Bitcoin Sees Uptick as Tech Giants' Earnings Fuel Market Optimism Amid Ongoing Short-Term Pressures

This excerpt is from the CoinDesk 'Daybook' newsletter. To stay updated, sign up here if you haven't already. Bitcoin reached $77,400, rebounding alongside other risk assets following the release of earnings reports by major US tech companies, which helped stabilize the markets. Gains were observed after Apple, along with its peers including Alphabet, Microsoft, Meta, and Amazon, reported earnings that boosted industry sentiment with double-digit revenue growth. The earnings reports contributed to an increase in risk assets as renewed confidence in AI growth drew investors back to equities and crypto. However, the current bounce is attributed to relief buying rather than a conviction that a new rally has started. According to a note shared with CoinDesk by crypto exchange Mercado Bitcoin, the market is experiencing 'short-term pressure due to mixed structural factors,' including diminished hopes for rate cuts, ETF outflows, and increased geopolitical risk. Crypto prices remained steady despite a surge in oil prices and over $400 million in outflows from spot bitcoin ETFs as April concluded. Oil prices remain a significant factor, with higher crude prices resulting from the Iran conflict potentially fueling inflation and making central banks less inclined to cut interest rates. This could negatively impact crypto and other risk assets by making cash and bonds more appealing. The Federal Reserve maintained interest rates at 3.50% to 3.75%, with four dissenting voices, the most since 1992. Mercado Bitcoin noted that the decision and lack of clear rate-cut signals led to a repricing of policy expectations in the markets. According to Rony Szuster, the company's head of research, 'In the short term, the market is expected to remain volatile and highly reactive to economic data. In the medium term, the structure will depend on the stabilization of institutional flows and the path of global monetary policy.' Jerome Powell's term as Fed chair ends on May 15, and Kevin Warsh is expected to chair the June FOMC meeting, which may induce volatility given Warsh's preference for tighter monetary policy. The key challenge remains at the $80,000 level. A successful break above this level could attract new buyers, while a failed attempt may trigger selling if leveraged long positions are unwound. It's essential to stay vigilant. For further analysis of today's activity in altcoins and derivatives, see Crypto Markets Today. For a comprehensive list of events this week, refer to CoinDesk's 'Crypto Week Ahead.' Current Trends Today's Signal The weekly bitcoin price chart is testing resistance at the $80,000 zone, with the RSI showing early signs of a bullish divergence, as the price printed a lower low while the RSI held higher, though this remains unconfirmed on a weekly close. Failure to break above $80,000 will keep the price range-bound between the 200-day exponential moving average of about $68,000 and the $80,000 level.